Roller-bearing.



FFICE.

PATENT .A FRANK W. THOMAS, OF TOLEDO, OHIO.

ROLLER- BEARING.

SPECIFICATON forming part of Letters Patent No. 690,484, dated. January'7, 1902.

Application filed November 4l 1901. Serial l\To. 80,980. (No model.) v

To all whom. i0' may concern:

Be it known that I, FRANK W. THOMAS, a citizen of the United States,residing at Toledo, in the county of Lucas and State of Ohio,liaveinvented a new and'useful Improvement in Roller-Bearings forOar-Axle Journals, of which the following is a specification.

Myinvention relates to a roller-bearing for car-axle journals, and hasfor its object to provide a bearing of the kind that will greatly reducefriction and that is ,adapted to allow lateral movement of the axle andjournal within the journal-box. I accomplish this object by constructinga bearing as hereinafter' described and illustrated in the draw.

ings, in which-A Figure 1 is a vertical longitudinal section of ajournal-box and the bearing in position therein on the journal. Fig. 2is a horizontal section through the top of the journal-box, showing atop View of the bearing-cage. Fig. 3 is a cross-section through the box,bearing, and journal on line X X, Fig. l; and Fig. 4. is a view of theinner side of the front end plate of the bearing-cage, showingdetachable wear-plate.

In the drawings, 1 designates the bearing in position on a car-axlejournal 2, within a ear-axle journal-box 3 of the ordinary type andequipment, excepting that the size of the opening at the front end andthe closure therefor is increased.

The bearing 1 comprises the cage 4 and a plurality of rollers 5 of equallength and diameter. The cage 4 is formed of an oblong rectangular metalblock 6 of equal length with the journal and 4the front end closureplate7. The top 8 of the cage is datand preferably provided with incuts toreduce the frictional area, and the sides 9 are outwardly curvedlengthwise of the block, as shown in Fig. 2, increasing the width of theblock from the ends toward the center until the sides at the widest partof the biock touch the side walls of the journal-box. The rear end 10 ofthe block 6 and outer face of the front end plate 7 are also curvedoutward"from side to side of the cage, increasing the length of thecage-from the sides toward the centers of the ends until the ends of thecage contact,'re spectively, with the inner rear wall 11 and thedepending bearing-flange 12 of the jour- A cage and lightly with eachother.

nal-box. The block Gis provided with a central'longitudinal bore 13,extending from the front end to the rear end wall 14, through which thebore is concentrically extended at at a reduced diameter, adapted toclosely receive the journal, but without friction. The rear end wall 14in its inner face is provided withv the circular groove 15, and oppositethereto, cut into the inner face of the end plate 7, is a circulargroove 16, both grooves being of equal diameter and concentric with thebore' 13. The end plate 7 is secured to the front end of block (i by thebolts 17. Withiu'the circle of groove 16 the plate 7 is recessed toreceive a detachable wearplate 18, adapted to contact with the outer endof the journal. The bore 13 is preferably provided with a steel bushing19; but when the surface around the bore is case-hardened or chilled thebushing may be omitted. Rollers 5, which are preferably of hardenedmetal,

are of sutiicient number and diameter when longitudinally disposedaround the journal within the cage to be in diametric contact with thejournal and the inner face of the Each of said rollers is provided atthe ends with axial spindles 19 of a diameter to freely enter thegrooves l5 and 16, respectively, without contact with the sides of thegrooves. lVhen the bearing thus constructed is removed from the journal,the spindles 19 pre vent the rollers from dropping out of the cage andretain them in position for mounting the bearing on the journal. Byjacking up the car-truck until the bearing is free from the dependingauge 12 of the journal-box the bearing may be removed from or mounted onthe journal..

Jlt is apparent that by the construction shown and described thefriction of the bearing will be greatly reduced and will be mainly thatproduced bythe temporary contact of the ends of the rollers with theends of the cage and the end of the journal with the wearplate while thecar is passing around curves. By curving the sides and ends of thebearing-cage, as shown and described, the bearing is adapted to allowlateral movement of the journal without looseness in the journalbox, andthe axle is thereby relieved from a rigid alinement with itsjournal-boxes and is IOO niade free yto s's'iime an angle thereto,whereby when the ange of a Wheel of the axle contacts with the outerrail of a eurve the axle is thereby set at an angle to the truckframeadapted to move the wheels in the direction of the curve freely and withgreatlyrednced strain.

In application Serial No. 43,706 I have shown, described, and claimed asimilar bearing provided with an oil-chamber in the bottom of the cageand with means for supplying oil therefrom to the rollers within thecage. For all light-Weight ears, however, for which the bearing hereinshown and described is designed, little, if any, lubricant is required,and this may be supplied through an Oil-hole at any suitable andconvenient place in the Wall of the cage. In the form of my inventionherein shown I have dispensed with the FRANK W. THOMAS.

Witnesses:

S. N. YOUNG, 'FRANK W. LONG.

